SpaceIL, a nonprofit organization aiming to land the first Israeli spacecraft on the moon, and a leading contestant in the prestigious Google Lunar X Prize (GLXP) competition has announced the launch of its crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo. The campaign is designed to not only raise funds for the highly innovative lunar project, but also to engage as broad an audience as possible with its mission to the moon.
The organization seeks to raise $240,000, one dollar for each mile to the moon. The funds, which the organization hopes will complete their current round of funding, will be put toward fuel costs - which total $500,000. Any additional funds raised will help support SpaceIL’s core mission of creating an Israeli “Apollo Effect,” inspiring the next generation to think differently about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Last month SpaceIL received a $16.4 million donation from the Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Family Foundation. SpaceIL has strong grassroots support and has obtained donations from Morris Kahn and the Schusterman Family Foundation and is backed by Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) (TASE: ARSP.B1), the Israel Space Agency, Bezeq Israeli Telecommunication Co. Ltd. (TASE: BEZQ), Tel Aviv University, and the Weizmann Institute of Science.
SpaceIL is building the world’s smallest spacecraft loaded with groundbreaking innovation in deep space exploration. The organization aims to show that space exploration is no longer limited to global superpowers with vast space programs, and that any group, small country or university can get involved and contribute to advancing scientific discovery. They also see their technological breakthroughs as spurring a new wave of commercial space-related industries.
SpaceIL CEO Eran Privman said, “We’re excited to harness the power of the Indiegogo platform to raise awareness and build involvement with SpaceIL. We have great momentum and a lot of inspiration to share and hope as many people as possible will come aboard and join our mission to the moon."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 15, 2014
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